Draft equalizer



in Model.)

'W. G. DEVEREAUX & M. MURPHY.

- DRAFT EQ UALIZER.

Patented June 15, 1886.

UNITED STATES WILLIAM C. DEVEREAUX AND MAURICE MURPHY, OF CHICAGO, ILLINOIS,-

PATENT. @rrrcia.

ASSIGNORS TO SAID DEVEREAUX AND SISTER M. RAPHAEL, OF SAME PLACE.

DRAFT EQUALlZ ER.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 343,659, dated-Tune 15, 1886.

Application filed January 16, 1886. Serial No. 188,786. (No model.)

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that we, WILLIAM G. DEVER- EAUX and MAURIOE MURPHY, both citizens of the United States, residing at Chicago, in

the county of Cook and State of Illinois, have invented a certain new and useful Improvement in Draft-Equalizers, of which the following is a specification.

It has heretofore been proposed to provide,

To as a means for attaching a whiffletree to thecross-bar of a pair of thills, or to the clevis of a plow or other implement, an appendage to the whiffletree consisting of a pair of rods, each secured to one end of the whiffletrees by I 5 a bolt passing through the whiffletree and through an eye at the end of the rod, said rods being arranged to converge to the rear of the whiffletree, and being connected together at their proximately meeting ends by a goose- 2; neck ring that is to be attached to the crossbar of the thills or to the plow-clevis. In another instance it has been proposed, as a means for providing a spring resistance in op.- position to the pull upon the whiffletree, to provide the whiflietree with an appendage consisting of two rods, each bolted at one end to an end of. the whiffletree, and both arranged to converge rearwardly to within a short distance of each other, at which juncture the rods a are bent forward and secured to the middle portion of the whiffletree. The said forwardly-bent portions of these rods are encircled by a coiled spring attached at its ends to disks fitted to slide upon said forwardly-bent por- 3 5 tions of the rods, and to the disk nearest the whiffletree is attached an eyebolt that extends back centrally through the spring. The eye of said bolt is designed to be attached to the vehicle or implement to be drawn. Under to such construction, however, latcralstrain is exerted on the whiffietree along its middle portion when a pull is exerted upon the traces that are attached to the whiffietree-hooks.

The principal object of our invention is to provide a whiffletree or double-tree with an attachment wherein all of the advantages of the two foregoing constructions are combined and the disadvantages avoided. To such end we provide a flexible or jointed rod, desirably 5 composed of two rod-sections arranged to converge somewhat from the ends of the Whittletree or double-tree, the proximately meeting inner ends of the sections beingsuitablylinked together, while at their outer ends said rodsections have yielding spring-connections with the whiffletree or double-tree. In this way the pull of the traces upon the hooks at the ends of the whiffletree or double-tree will be transferred to the flexible or jointed rod, so as to relieve the whiffletree or double-tree from lateral strain, and at the same time a spring resistance be interposed between the trace and the vehicle or implement that is to be drawn, thereby relieving the horses neck from sudden positive shocks or jerks.

A further object is to provide each end of the whiffletree or double-tree with a novel and improved construction of socket-piece that is formed with a hook for a trace, and with a bearing for one end of the flexible or jointed rod and the spring that is provided at such point.

In the drawings, Figure 1 represents a plan View of a draft-equalizer embodying the principles of this invention; Fig. 2 is an enlarged detail representing a section through one end portion of the evener-bar. Fig. 3 is an enlarged end view of the evener-bar and its end attachment.

In said drawings, A A refer to the Whittletrees, and B to the evener-bar. Each whiffletree or single-tree is provided with a jointed rod, 0, attached to the ends ofithe whiflletree and adapted to be drawn at its middle portion, to some extent, back from the single'tree, as herein illustrated.

As a simple and convenient mode of forming the jointed bar, it is composed of two sections attached at their outer endsto the singletree, and connected together at their inner ends by a ring, 0, which latter serves as an efficient device for connecting the jointed rod with the evener. The evener B is likewise provided with a jointed or two-part rod, D, having the outer ends of its two sections connectedwith the ends of the evener, and their inner ends connected together by a suitable ring, link, or plate, D, provided with a perforation, whereby it can be attached to the pole or vehicle.

The ends of the single-trees and evener are provided with end caps or socket-pieces, E, which are each formed with a lateral hookshaped projection, c, at one side, and a later- The hooks of the whiffletrees or singlet-recs are designed to engage the traces, while the hooks of the evener are designed to engage the rings 0 of the single-tree rods, thus dispensing with elevises, and providing a simple and ready connecting device.

The lugs e are perforated to receive the ends of the jointed rods, those of the jointed rod (3 being simply inserted through the perforations and then furnished with nuts 0 or the rod can be headed at its ends to prevent its detachment from the liigs, or otherwise snita ly-em ee d th ew h} a ma he p et nsi- The en s of ed D are, however, passe t some extent through the lugs of the evener sa h t-P e e 1 was av sp g E a e l i fl H1 90 L 7968 between said hug and nuts or heads oh the termini of the red In this way. when a m l i xe d nen the evener, the end po t ons red D w ll be drawn ba k, 9 Pra ically th ugs d awn forward upon the rod and againstthe springs, which y he nul with a gradua ly-hr creasing resistance up to a point where the e stan be om s pos t Th socke -nieces or e d p r p ovided with springs G, secured at one end to the socket-pieces, and having their free ends arranged to normally lie in notches formed at the ends of 'the hooks in such way that the springs can be pushed or bent baelt toward the shanks of the hooks, but cannot be bent outwardly away from the hooks. In this way these springswhieh are in the nature of springt ongu es, serve as reliable keepers.

13y reason of the foregoing arrangement it will be obvious that a pull upon the hooks at the ends of either whiffletree will be transferred to the rod 0, thus relievingv the whiflietree from strain; and it will likewise be evi dent that a pull of the whif'fletrees upon the hooks of the evener will be transferred to the rod D, so as to relieve the evener of lateral strain in a similar way.

\Vith regard to the principles of this i nvention, desire to be understood as claiming the feature of the jointed rod applied to one or two whiffletrees, according to whether one ortwo may be employed, and also we claim the said feature substantially as herein applied to an evener.

The feature of the springs in connection with the jointed rod could evidently be applied to a whii'lletree, and hence we do not limit ourselves to an evener but claim the same as applied to a whifiletree.

\Vl at we claim, and desire to secure by Letters Patent, is-

l. A whiflletree or donbletree combined with a flexible or jointed rod attached at its ends to the ends of the whillletree or doubletree by yielding spring-connections, substan' tiali y as and for thepnrposesherein described 2. A whiiiietree or doubletree combined with the socket-pieces E, each formed with a hook, and the flexible or jointed rod attached at its ends by yielding spring-connections to the Said SQeket-pieces, substantially as de scribed. V

The whiffietree or donbletree combined with the socket-pieces E, each formed with a book, a, and a perforated lug, e, the flexible or j ointed rod having its ends extended through the perforated lngsof the socket-pieces, and the springs F, applied between the ends of the rod and the said lugs, substantially as descl'ih d.

XVILLIAM C. DEVEREAUX. MAURICE MURPHY.

Witnes CHAS. G. PAGE, FR NK W. SEVERIN. 

